White Moth
OBJECT NUMBER
S2019.3.230
DATE
1959, Showa era
ARTIST
Hideo Hagiwara (1913–2007)
PLACE OF ORIGIN
Japan
MEDIUM
Woodblock print
DIMENSIONS
H × W (image): 66.5 × 39.5 cm
(26 3/16 × 15 9/16 in.)
CREDIT LINE
Purchase and partial gift of the Kenneth and Kiyo Hitch Collection from Kiyo Hitch with funds from the Mary Griggs Burke Endowment
Abstract art can be gestural, thoughtful, or bold, as any other art form, but where I feel abstract art differs is how it allows for depth of interpretation.
With its deep blues and shades of gray and ebony, this print makes me feel contemplative. The soft, light violet moth insists on its presence but doesn't overpower, much like reminiscing on a bittersweet memory.
The artist created, carved, and printed the entire edition using a method called Sosaku Hanga. This is the method I use, so the creation is entirely one's own, mistakes and all, but empowers the artist to experiment.
I relate to the artist's method because I feel I'm having an artist-to-artist conversation with Hideo. He has given me the permission to experiment and is pushing me to think of more ways to develop my own abstract art.